French Family Group – 1857

Illustrated by female artist Laure Noel (1827-1878), this print for the Catholic magazine “Musée des Familles” depicts two women and a child (or perhaps three generations) outdoors in a garden as they model their French fashions for 1857. The woman on the left is seated in a chair wearing a pale green dress trimmed with many horizontal rows medium green ribbon on the lower two-thirds of the skirt. The waist is tied with a long, wide sash, and the bodice is pleated and gathers at the center front of the waist. The jewel neckline has a narrow white lace edged collar.

The full sleeves have dropped shoulders, two ruffles edged with ribbon above the elbow, and wide cuffs also edged with ribbon. A narrow white lace ruffle finishes the snug wrists. She wears a netted black snood at the back of waving brown hair, which has a center part. Gold hair pins appear to hold the snood at the back of her hair. On her lap sits a young child, probably a boy, in a pink and white dress, plaid or gingham. The outfit has a pink flounced skirt trimmed with a double stripe of white ribbon at the hem, and a matching short jacket in pink, trimmed with white point lace.

The waist length open jacket has short wide sleeves trimmed lace and ribbon, and curved fronts. A wide diagonal band of white ribbon trimmed with buttons accents left front of the jacket. The white pleated blouse has a jewel neckline and full sleeves with band cuffs. The child wears white eyelet lace trimmed knee length pantalettes, socks with a band of red and black argyle, and brown and black button boots. The child’s hair is short and curly, making it likely the child is a boy “not yet breeched.”

The cap has a white upstanding brim accented with a buckle and feather, again in a masculine style, perhaps a Glengarry bonnet. The woman on the right wears a purple dress with a muted black plaid. The hem is banded with three rows of black velvet ribbon. Over her dress she wears a netted black mantelet with panels of black ribbon. She wears yellow gloves, a gold bangle on her wrist, and a white lace cap edged and tied with pink ribbon and trimmed with a white lace ruffle, and purple berries. She reaches forward to touch the child tenderly on his cheek.

The purple and black of her dress leads the viewer to think that she may be a widow, with her married daughter and grandchild. In the background stands a large stately home which blends Gothic and classical styles. A large white urn holds climbing roses behind the woven wicker chair on the left.

Credit: The Claremont Colleges